Transformable folding chair



Dec. 23, 1958 B. H. RUAUD ErAL 2,365,431

TRANSFORMABLE FOLDING CHAIR Filed April 27, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 lNvEN z) BEZNAQO HENQJ QuAuo g 1205221 QUAUD W M L AT TORNE Y Dec. 23, 1958 RUAUD ETAL 2,865,431

TRANSFORMABLE FOLDING CHAIR Filed April 27, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOQ$ @EZNAZO HENQJ ZUAUD 5', 20622-1 ZUAUD svw i mm ATTORNEY Dec. 23, 1958 B. H. RUAUD ET AL TRANSFORMABLE FOLDING CHAIR 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed April 27, 1956 1958 B. H. RUAUD ET AL TRANSFORMABLE FOLDING CHAIR 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed April 27. 1956 Dec. 23, 1958 B. H. RUAUD ET AL 2,865,431

TRANSFORMABLE FOLDING CHAIR Filed April 27, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 TRANSEFURMABLE FGLDING CHAIR Bernard Henri Ruaud and Robert Ruaud, Talenee, France Application April 27, 1956, Serial No. 581,111

1 Claim. (Cl. 155-106) The present invention relates to improvements in a transformable folding chair of new design.

it is one object of the present invention to provide a folding chair which is light and therefore easily transportable and which can be made to assume at will a very great variety of positions from the sitting up position to the fully reclining position and which enables the leg of the person using the chair to be placed in positions independent of those assumed by the body.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a chair comprising a U-shaped frame member forming the seat on which are articulated a U-shaped frame member supporting the back of the person usin the chair, a U-shaped frame member for supporting the legs of the person using the chair and a Ll-shaped frame member forming a suspension arrangement the upper ends of which are prolonged well above the level of the U-shaped frame member forming the seat. Canvas connects the lower end of the U-shaped frame member supporting the legs of the person using the chair and the upper end of the Ushaped frame member for the back, armrests are articulated on the U-shaped frame member for the back and on the said extensions of the U-shaped suspension frame member, brakes or parts adjustable in length connect the said extensions to the U-shaped frame member forming the seat and a support provided with a horizontal axle to which the chair as a whole is suspended by the upper ends of the said extensions of the U-shaped suspension frame member. t

it is yet another object of the present invention to provide a chair wherein the canvas passes freely over the front transversal bar of the U-shaped frame member forming the seat.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a chair wherein the U-shaped frame member forming the seat and that supporting the legs of the person using the chair are wound on the U-shaped suspension frame member by means of common axles.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a chair wherein the arm-rests and elongated lock arms are wound on the extensions of the U-shaped suspension frame member by a common axle.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a chair wherein the support comprises two U-shaped frame members the transversal bars of which rest on the ground and the corresponding upper ends of which are wound on one another, so as to form a whole that can be folded back.

It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a chair wherein the transversal bars of the U-shaped frame member form the support rest on the ground by means of rubber rings fitted on to the said bars.

With these and other objects in View which will become apparent in the following detailed description, the present invention will be clearly understood in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the chair in the easy chair position;

Fig. 2 is a perspective front view of the chair shown in a position similar to that of Fig, 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same chair in a position for relaxing of the user;

Fig. 4- is a perspective front view of the chair shown in a position similar to that of Fig. 3;

Figs. 5a and 5b are fragmentary front and side elevations, respectively, of the joint between the back frame member and the arm support;

Figs. 6a and 6b are fragmentary front and side elevations, respectively, of the joint between the back frame and the seat;

Figs. 7a and 7b are fragmentary front and side elevations, respectively, of the joint between the suspension member and the arm support;

Figs. 8a and 8b are fragmentary front and side elevations, respectively, of the joint among the front leg memher, the seat member and the suspension member;

Figs. 9a and 9b are front and side elevations, respectively, of the front suspension member and the rear leg;

Figs. 10:: and 10b are front and side elevations, respectively, of the elongated lock arm and the seat;

Figs. 11a, 11b and are front and side elevations and top plan view, respectively, of the joint between the rear leg, the front leg and the jaw;

Fig. 12 is a diagrammatic view of the fitting of the canvas on to the U-shaped frame member supporting the back;

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary front elevation of the fitting of the tube for taking up the canvas, as shown in Fig. 12;-

Fig. 14a is a front elevation of the fitting of rubber rings on the U-shaped frame member forming the leg of the chair;

Fig. 141; is a section, on a larger scale, along the lines idly-44b of Fig. 14a; and

Fig. is a section along the lines 14c-14c of Fig. 14b.

Referring now to the drawings and in particular to Figs. 1 and 2, it will be seen that the chair and its support are composed essentially of a certain number of U-shaped frame members and of a piece of canvas. A first U-shaped frame member A forms the back of the chair; its open side is turned downwards and the canvas 1 is hooked to its upper part by means of fasteners (see Fig. 12), the said canvas making an idle turn around the U-shaped frame member A.

The U-shaped frame member forming the seat B (see also Figs. 6a and 6b) is pivoted to the lower ends of the lateral branches of the U-shaped frame member back A. A U-shaped suspension frame member C and a similar shaped frame member for supporting the leg members D (see also Figs. 8a and 8b) are pivoted near the front ends of the U-shaped frame member forming the seat B. The canvas passes over the transversal bar of the U-shaped frame member forming the seat B and is hooked on to a bar K, Fig. 13, of the U-shaped frame member supporting the legs in a similar manner as to the upper end of the U-shaped frame member supporting the back.

The lateral branches of the U-shaped frame member supporting the back A and the similarly shaped suspension frame member C are connected by armrests E by means of pivots the details of the structure of which can be seen in Figs. 5a, 5b and 7a, 71). Moreover, on the pivotal axis of the arm-rest on the U-shaped suspension frame member C there also pivots an elongated lock arm F provided with stop notches adapted to engage a screw integral with the U-shaped frame member forming the seat B (Figs. 10a, 10b).

The chair as a whole is supported by the upper ends Oflthe U-rshaped suspension frame member C by means of ,pivotal .axes which pass through the upper ends of the lateral branches of the main U-shaped frame member forming the leg G (see also Figs. 9a, 9b). The leg G comprises ,in addition a buttress 'U-shaped frame member H pivoted near the upper end of the main U-shaped frame member forming the leg G, by means-of a jaw I (-Figs. 11a, 11b, 110).

The transversal parts of the U-shaped frame members G and H forming the support of the chair rest on the ground by means ,of rubber rings (see Figs, 14a, 24b, 140).

All these U-shaped frame members may be of metal, forinstance, such as steel tubes, the arm-rests may be of wood and the elongated lock arms of .flat metal.

When a person is resting in the chair, the canvas pulls upwards on the 'U-shaped frame member supporting the leg members D, so that the weight of the legs compensates for this force and maintains the said element in equilib'rium.

According to the notch of the elongated lock arms P which are engaged in the stop screw, three different positions are obtainable, i. e. a sitting up position, a semireclining position and a :fully reclining position. The first and last of these three positions may be seen, respectively, in Figs. .1, 2 and 3, 4 the semi-reclining position being the intermediate position between :these two shown positions. In each of these three positions the person using the chair can assume a very great variety of difierent arrangements by shifting his center ofgravity in relation to the suspension point of the chair.

Thus the present invention provides a chair which can be transformed into a reclining chair, by assuming successively any desired intermediate position. Moreover, the position of the legs of the person using the chair is independent of that of the body owing to the freedom of pivotal movement given to the U-shaped frame ,member supporting the member D. Any movementfor changing the position can be made without effort.

Finally, when the brakes are unhooked, the U-shaped frame members A, B, D can be folded back along the similarly shaped frame member -C which itself folds back against both the U-shaped frame members G and H (see arrows in Fig. 1).

.The result is a practical and transportable .chair that can be used for relaxation inv medical cases, light and taking up little space whenfolded.

It will .be obvious that the invention is not limited by the details of the practical example shown above. Various changes may be made in the details of construction without departing from the scope of the invention.

While we have disclosed one embodiment of the present invention, it is to be understood that this embodiment is given by example only and not in a limiting sense, the scope of the present invention being determined by the objects and the claim.

We claim:

A folding reclining chair, comprising a first U-shaped frame member forming the seat of said chair, a second U-shaped frame member forming the back of said chair and pivotally connected with the rear ends of said first U-shaped frame member, a third U-shaped frame memoer forming a support for the legs of a person using said chair, a fourth U-shaped frame member forming a suspension means for said chair and having extensions projecting above the level of said first U-shaped frame member, both said third and fourth U-shaped frame members being pivotally secured to the front ends of saidfirst U-shaped frame member, a canvas strip having one end secured to the lower end of said third U-shaped frame member and having the other end secured to the upper end of said second U-shaped frame member, arm rests for said chair and comprising bars pivotally connected with said second U-shaped frame member and with said extensions of said fourth U-shaped frame member, elon gated lock arms pivotally connected with said extensions of said fourth U-shaped frame members and adjustably as to their length ,oonnectable with said first U-shaped frame Lmember, and a ground supported stand supporting said chair and comprising at its upper end a horizontally disposed axle, connecting said stand pivotally with said extensions of said fourth U-shaped frame member, and a fifth and sixth U-shaped frame member, each of said last mentioned frame members having its cross member disposed on the ground, at least one rubber ring .iitted of each of said cross members, and the upper ends of said fifth and sixth of said frame members being pivotally connected to each other, in order to permit of folding of said-standt-ogetherwith said chair.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 766,836 Miller .et al. Aug. 9, 19.04 2,431,670 .Anderson Dec. 2, 1947 2,571,463 Lorenz Oct. 16, 1951 2,611,419 McKinney .et al. Sept. 23, 1952 

